During the 1970s, singer/songwriter Randy Newman distinguished himself by dodging the prevailing confessional trend that was de rigueur for his peers, preferring to build his songs around richly detailed, often grotesque... more &raquo characters, and taking his story lines from anyone's history but his own. By the late '80s, however, his parallel ambitions as a film composer now yielding a separate, equally distinctive body of work, Newman was relaxed enough to allow introspection: 1988's Land of Dreams spins Newman's childhood sojourn in wartime New Orleans into the wonderful, opening title song and the farcical "New Orleans Wins the War," relives grade school traumas ("Four Eyes"), and offers a bleak portrait of a marriage unraveling on the quietly devastating "Bad News from Home." These songs, and two atypically tender love songs, "Something Special" and "Falling In Love," are as close to autobiography as he's ever gotten. --Sam Sutherland&laquo less

Synopsis

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During the 1970s, singer/songwriter Randy Newman distinguished himself by dodging the prevailing confessional trend that was de rigueur for his peers, preferring to build his songs around richly detailed, often grotesque characters, and taking his story lines from anyone's history but his own. By the late '80s, however, his parallel ambitions as a film composer now yielding a separate, equally distinctive body of work, Newman was relaxed enough to allow introspection: 1988's Land of Dreams spins Newman's childhood sojourn in wartime New Orleans into the wonderful, opening title song and the farcical "New Orleans Wins the War," relives grade school traumas ("Four Eyes"), and offers a bleak portrait of a marriage unraveling on the quietly devastating "Bad News from Home." These songs, and two atypically tender love songs, "Something Special" and "Falling In Love," are as close to autobiography as he's ever gotten. --Sam Sutherland

Member CD Reviews

Randy Newman's songs are always thought-provoking and catchy. The interlude in the first song on the album, "Dixie Flyer", is the lovely lyrical bit heard on NPR's "Car Talk".

CD Reviews

Newman on the brink of big 1980s success...

ewomack | MN USA | 12/01/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Mark Knopfler, of Dire Straits fame, said about his "collaboration" with Randy Newman that "I'm doing this for Randy, I don't need the cash." In 1988, when Knopfler co-produced this album, Dire Straits were still riding the seemingly permanent wave caused by "Brothers in Arms" (which included the then ubiquitous "Money For Nothing"; MTV and radio stations couldn't stop playing it). He backed Newman on "Saturday Night Live" playing "It's Money That Matters". Newman suddenly appeared everywhere: on "The Tonight Show" and "Late Night With David Letterman". In fact, most of the album was played live on various television shows in 1988. Attentive Newman fans probably thought, maybe, just maybe, this will be Newman's huge break? Finally he will get the recognition he deserves! Then he can quit writing film scores and put out more than two albums a decade!! THANK YOU MARK KNOPFLER!!!

Well, of course we know what happened. "Land of Dreams" did well enough ("It's Money That Matters" wafted in and out of the airwaves in 1988), but, alas, was not the huge blockbuster some thought it could or should be. Newman went back to his lucrative day job and didn't surface again until 1995's "Faust". In his wake, however, he left a great album.

"Dixie Flyer" and "New Orleans Wins the War" are amongst Newman's best songs. Both talk about his southern American upbringing (both were also produced by Knopfler; his trademark volume-pedal guitar seeps in and out of the mix). "Four Eyes" takes on the subject of childhood cruelty in a sink-or-swim manner imposed by his father. Newman's record of his first taste of reality? The 1980s sythesizers kick in here as well, changing the mood and sound drastically from the first two songs. "Falling in Love" (produced by ELO's Jeff Lynne - so Newman was apparently forgiven for 1979's "The Story of a Rock And Roll Band") and "Something Special" should have put Newman on the charts. Both are uplifting unsappy portaits of that fuzziest of all human emotions. The eerie "Bad News From Home" presents the other side of the story. Nothing special about that love. "Roll With The Punches" reintroduces Newman's famous "Big Jerk" character (the same who sang "Yellow Man", "You Can Leave Your Hat On", "Memo To My Son", "Short People" and many others). It speaks for itself. "Masterman and Baby J" doesn't play too well these days. In 1988 it played like a great parody of the lame pop rap that was just beginning to infiltrate the airwaves. Unfortunately, it hasn't aged well. The same can be said for "Red Bandana". These two tracks are the album's weak spot. "Follow The Flag" presents an empty anthem. Which flag is being followed? The assumption is the American Flag, but why think that? It more reflects on people's tendency to group under a symbol. "It's Money That Matters" sounds a little too real for comfort at times. Lyrically, it now seems a bit too prophetic for its own good. Still a great song. Then the devastating closer: "I Just Want You To Hurt Like I Do". On tv and in concert, Newman often introduces this one as his "We Are The World". He asks the audience to imagine a big line of people, hands joined, all swaying to the rhythm and singing in unison. The song is also amongst Newman's best and most poignant. Whew, what a closer.

Newman closed out the 1980s with incredible style. Unfortunately he did only produce two non-film albums that decade (and went on to do the exact same in the 1990s). Newman never lost it, and still hasn't. One wonders if the sheer paucity of his later output contributes to his continued quality. If so, then the wait between albums was well worth it."

This Is Randy's Masterpiece

R. W. Rasband | Heber City, UT | 06/22/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is Newman's greatest album. The first six songs are a kind of spiritual autobiography, leading from childhood innocence to adult disillusion. They also contain some of the wittiest lyrics and most gorgeous music you have ever heard. The next few songs show Newman the narrator and critic considering the society around him with his bemused, jaundiced eye. Then he returns to autobiography with the devastating final two songs: you will be absolutely chilled by the classic "I Want You To Hurt Like I Do." This music will live long after most top-ten albums have been forgotten."

Couldn't make it through (1 star?)

David M. Stith | Houghton, NY | 06/17/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I admit, I'm not being a good reviewer here. It's important to live with music for a while, let it hit you from different angles, when critiquing. I haven't listened to the album in it's entirety.

I decided to buy the album after hearing 'Sail Away' - a friend loaned me the album and I fell in love instantly: his heart stopping clarity, his cynic lover American gaze.. Sail Away, where it's not overly simple, is elegaic and powerful. So, I fell in love with Sail Away and rushed to my computer to order anything else I could find by Randy. My first two orders were this and Randy Newman's first album. The first album SOARS! it's one of my favorite discoveries of the last five years! His orchestral arangements flesh out the simplicity of his vignettes so that each song is a miniature symphony. The lonliness of his voice is made beautiful by the orchestral richness -- and the caterwalling, the wail, really sings in it's infancy. Anyway -- that first album took everything that I loved about Sail Away and magnified it.

Land of dreams is destroyed by its claustrophobic mid 80's production -- the life that is so apparent in his first album here is completely plastic, formless, tired. Listening to the first couple tracks made me immensely sad. The lyrics, too, seem predictibly nemwanesque. It's an attempt at honesty -- I bet the fans at the time loved this -- but it seems so colored, so dramatized, full of smoke and mirrors, I can't help but feel manipulated. This is LA's cookie-cutter Randy Newman. Roll em out, ship em hot. Americans love caricature.

I had the same reaction to a compilation of ray charles duets. The authenticity of Ray's character was pummeled by horrible production -- synth strings, drums machines, big cymbal rolls and glistening chimes -- the drama was overbearing. Mocked the wonderful flaws of Ray's voice. It's like the producers want you to forget that this is a person singing -- this is the same voice this person orders pizza with, yelled at the umpire with... It's aweful karaoki.

Like I said, I haven't made it through the CD. I intend to try again. I'm sorry that I have to put 'stars' to my feelings. I put three stars so that you the reader might not discard this review as cynical, overbearing. But I feel like the recording is unapproachable. It's like watching an interview between Christina Aguilara and Anselm Kiefer -- how painful! How awkward and Painful!

It's interesting to note that on Randy's most recent recording (Songbook vol. 1) which features just Randy at his piano playing through some of his favorite pieces, he plays nothing from this record. I wonder how he feels about this recording."

Best Randy, Best Pop Sequence of All Time

R. Robillard | Bound Brook, NJ USA | 05/12/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is Randy Newman's best album, and that's saying something. As usual, it's filled with characters saying and do rotten things, but with whom you can also empathize, and who are being mistreated at least as severly as they perhaps deserve.The first three songs on this album are a brief autobiography of Newman from his mother's pregnancy to the day he started kindergarten. They're in chronological order and run into each other. Taken as a group, they are the greatest sequence of pop music every written."

Another good album of Neman - what else is new?

Arye Mirovski | Haifa Israel | 02/11/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The sharpest American creator does it again. A good one, but not as "Little criminals" or "Trouble in paradise". Listen to the internal joke between Newman and Mark Knopfler in "It's money that matters", when Knopfler (also the producer of some songs) brought the guitar sound from Dire straits "Money from nothing". Enjoy the rich sound of "Four eyes" (my favorite) and smile bitterly to "Masterman and baby J.". It's not Newman's best, but no one lately mixes words and music better than him."